Join this session to explore how to meet the talent needs of rural companies and communities today and tomorrow. Learn how workforce development models – particularly apprenticeship and other forms of work-based learning – can effectively adapt to a rural context. This session will emphasize strategies to grow talent locally, beginning with youth-focused programming, and will examine workforce development in the context of broader national trends, including the Great Resignation, a shift to remote work, and national investment in infrastructure such as broadband technology. This presentation will also examine how the economic development community can support a stronger and more equitable talent ecosystem.

1. P R E S E N T E D B Y
INVESTING IN A RURAL
TALENT STRATEGY
DDAA/NADO Annual Conference
Deborah Kobes
March 16, 2022

2. The American labor market is broken. Our
rapidly changing economy demands skilled
and adaptable workers, but many people
lack the education and training employers
require. JFF is transforming the workforce
and education systems to accelerate
economic advancement for all.
JFF designs innovative solutions, scales
proven programs, and influences industry
action and policymaking to drive the most
transformative impact.

3. COVID and the Great Resignation
What does this mean for the rural workforce?
Grow your own talent
Spotlight on youth
Creative collaboration
Role of economic development partners
Discussion

4. COVID AND THE
GREAT RESIGNATION

5. IMPACT OF COVID
Highest in persistently
poor rural counties
DIRECT HEALTH
IMPACT OF COVID
Higher for persistently
poor rural counties
Higher for workers in
low-wage jobs
Higher for young
adults, particularly
those who face
significant barriers to
the labor market
SPIKE IN
UNEMPLOYMENT
Community-based
organization and
workforce agency staff
diminished
Financial and program
capacity reduced
Challenges to data
collection
STRAIN ON
SERVICE
ORGANIZATIONS
Rise in remote
education
Investment in
broadband
RISE OF REMOTE
WORK

6. THE GREAT RESIGNATION EMPLOYMENT IMPACT

7. GREAT
RESIGNATION
Rural impact
Alyssa Fowers and Eli Rosenberg, “The
geography of the Great Resignation: First-time
data shows where Americans are quitting the
most,” Washington Post, October 22, 2021

8. RURAL OCCUPATIONAL
DISRUPTION
These industries are underrepresented in Appalachia
relative the US as a whole
But pre-COVID job growth (2012-2017) in Appalachia
maps onto the occupational patterns of the Great
Resignation:
• Health and social services – 11.6%
• Retail and trade - 11.1%
• Professional and technical services - 12.1%
APPALACHIA
Source: Rashida Kamal, Quitting is just half the story: the truth behind the ‘Great
Resignation’, The Guardian, January 4, 2022

9. REMOTE WORK
May 2020
38.4% of urban workers worked remotely
19.8% of rural workers worked remotely
February 2021
25.1% of urban workers worked remotely
8.0% of rural workers worked remotely
School districts also less likely to be remote or stay
remote than their urban counterparts

10. HOUSING IMPACT
REMOTE WORK
Source: Upwork Global, “Economist Report: Remote Workers on the Move”
Preferred Community Type
City Suburb Town Rural Area
Source: Lydia Saad, Gallop, Country Living Enjoys Renewed Appeal in U.S.

11. WHAT DOES THIS
MEAN FOR A RURAL
WORKFORCE?

12. RURAL DIVIDE
Community level
Non-poor counties Persistently poor counties
Robust industry presence Limited industry presence
Counties with stable populations Counties with declining populations
Access to urban centers Remote location
Broadband available Less broadband
Individual level
Medium- to high-wage workers Low-wage workers
Broadband access No broadband access
Established workers Young and new workers
Access to transportation, childcare,
healthcare, etc
Lack of access to employment-
enabling supports
Long-term residents Newcomers
Conduct an equity analysis in your own community

13. IMPACT OF COVID ON RURAL COMMUNITIES
Thomas P. Miller Associates 'Prosperity Through Equity’ Final Report, 2021

14. LOW-WAGE JOBS
% Workers Rural Urban
In state with $7.25 minimum wage 53.2 34.7
In “right-to-work” states with median
wages 15% lower than other states
63.9 48.1
Making less than $15 per hour 39.5 29.2
Source: Caius Z. Willingham, Rural Workers of Color Need a $15 Federal Minimum Wage, Center for American Progress, September 1, 2021

15. MULTIPLE JOB STRATEGIES NEEDED
Cultivate Remote Jobs
Grow
skilled
jobs
Grow
skilled
talent
Afford costs
of community
Job
retention
Community
stability
Attract skilled
remote
workers to
community
Deliver
training for
local workers
to work
remotely
Support Local Businesses Improve Quality of Existing Jobs

16. GROW YOUR OWN
TALENT

17. LOOK WITHIN
“Far too often, communities look beyond their own boundaries for solutions that will either jolt
them back to life or return them to a prior era. Communities may wish they had what another
community has, instead of recognizing what they already have. Or they may spend too much
of their time focused on attracting firms from elsewhere, instead of learning about and investing
in the needs of the existing—or potential—businesses in their own backyards.”
Source: Daniel Paul Davis and Andrew Dumont. “The “TRIC” to Fostering Shared Economic Prosperity in Rural America” in Investing in Rural Prosperity.
The Federal Reserve, 2021.

18. WORK-BASED LEARNING

19. REGISTERED APPRENTICESHIP
 Highly structured, experiential approach to building
employee skills
 Combination of on-the-job training with related
instruction under the supervision of skilled workers
 Helps workers learn both the theoretical and practical
aspects of an occupation
 Apprentices are employees of the company providing
the apprenticeship
 Apprentices can have access to post-secondary
education, training, and certifications

20. IT’S NOT YOUR FATHER’S
APPRENTICESHIP!
• More than 636,000 apprentices active in
2020, including 221,000 new apprentices.
• 13,500 new apprenticeship programs
established in the past 5 years.
• Includes traditional trades and growth
industries like IT, healthcare, advanced
manufacturing.

21. WHAT IS THE BUSINESS
VALUE OF APPRENTICESHIP?
• Employers build versus buy a fully
competent workforce from a broader
cross-section of society.
• Employee and employer have a
comprehensive training plan over time
and progression is based on skills
attainment and proficiency.
• Apprenticeship is adaptable and flexible—
it can be integrated into existing
recruitment and HR development
strategies.

22. • Creates a skilled talent pipeline.
• Hundreds of apprentice programs; use an existing
apprenticeship program or create one to meet your needs.
• Employee retention: >80% of apprenticeship completers
stay with the apprenticeship provider.
• Industry Retention: 91% of apprentices are employed in
their field of study upon completing their program.
• Shows community investment.
• Mentoring and coaching opportunities for current
employees.
WHAT IS THE BUSINESS VALUE OF AN
APPRENTICESHIP?
THERE’S MORE!

23. COLLABORATIVE DESIGN
Organizations Aligned for Apprenticeship
• Created and sustained through strong partnerships
• A proven strategy for a pipeline of qualified workers
for employers and industries
• Employers, no matter the industry, focus on
production. They want qualified candidates showing
up at their door, but many new hires don’t have the
skill required
• Intermediaries provide those links and facilitate the
conversations for employers to partner with training
providers, state and federal agencies, and
community-based organizations for the
apprenticeship program to be successful
• Important community-based organizations in rural
communities include faith-based organizations and
social clubs such as the Rotary, Elks Club, and VFW
Employers
Workforce
System
Economic
Development
State
Apprenticeship
Agencies
Community
Colleges
Local
Education
(K-12)
Foundations
Community-
Based
Organizations
Labor
Organizations

24. GEOGRAPHY OF RURAL APPRENTICESHIPS
Need to travel among home, job site, and training site(s)
One or more of these things may be located in an urban area
Challenges
Limited access to transportation and longer commute times
Climate related disasters can impact access to education and job training
Multiple Locations

25. FUNDING FOR REGISTERED APPRENTICESHIP
Federal Registered Apprenticeship Grants: State Apprenticeship Expansion grants, National Industry Intermediaries
WIOA: Individual Training Accounts, On-the-Job Training Funds, Out-of-school Youth Work Experiences, Incumbent Worker Training
Department of Transportation
SNAP E&T
Student Aid: Pell grants, Federal Work Study
HUD Section 3
State funding: Governor’s office, appropriations, tax credits, tuition reimbursement

26. ALASKA
EXAMPLES OF RURAL APPRENTICESHIP

27. MONTANA
Registered Apprenticeship and Work-Based Learning
EXAMPLES OF RURAL APPRENTICESHIP

28. SPOTLIGHT ON YOUTH

29. IMPACT ON NEW AND
YOUNGER WORKERS
Lost opportunity to learn about
workplace culture
Reduction in on-the-job learning
REMOTE WORK

30. YOUTH
APPRENTICESHIP
A structured, work-based learning
program designed to start when
apprentices are in high school.
High-quality youth apprenticeship
programs are built on partnerships that
include employers, high schools, and
providers of postsecondary education,
most often a community college.

32. JASPER, TEXAS
EXAMPLE OF SERVING OUT OF SCHOOL YOUTH

33. CREATIVE
COLLABORATION

34. SECTOR STRATEGIES
Alignment at the industry level between:
Employers and
Education and training providers
Supported by a:
Workforce Intermediary

36. SALINAS VALLEY, CA
EXAMPLE OF A RURAL SECTOR STRATEGY

37. COLLABORATE TO
AGGREGATE
REGIONALISM
Youth apprenticeship:
each school or district
specializing in one
occupation
SCHOOLS
Programs that can cross
industries so multiple
employers can participate
SECTORS
Multiple communities
work together on a single
program/initiative to
leverage each other’s
assets
COMMUNITIES

38. Engage youth as part of a grow your own strategy
Talent Hub
WiFi hotspots in high schools, community
colleges including parking lots during COVID
Internet Hub
Colocate services
Community Hub
MULTIPLE ROLES OF
SCHOOLS

39. COLLABORATION WITH THE PUBLIC WORKFORCE SYSTEM
Job Quality
Are we creating a
system that improves
the quality of the jobs
that exist in local
communities?
Explicit
Equity
Are we creating a
system that
improves the quality
of a person’s life?
Human
Centered
Design
Are we creating a
system that accurately
reflects and meets the
diverse needs of local
communities?

40. Help individuals connect to assets across the community
Navigators
Within an organization, dedicate staff to external partnerships
Coordinators
Group sponsors for apprenticeship
Intermediaries
INFRASTRUCTURE TO SUPPORT
COLLABORATION

41. ROLE OF ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT
PARTNERS

42. ELEVATING WORKFORCE
DEVELOPMENT
Design workforce development
as an economic development
support
Elevate voices of residents
CONVENING PARTNERS
Connect workforce investment
to community investment
GUIDING COMMUNITY
INVESTMENT
Broadband, transportation,
housing
BUILDING COMMUNITY
INFRASTRUCTURE

43. CONVENING
PARTNERS
WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT DOES NOT ACT
IN ISOLATION
Expanded view of
workforce
development
impact
Impact of
community stability
on workforce
development

44. Case making for workforce funds
Investing funding coming into community in a way that
supports workforce development
Utilizing the power of procurement
Connecting entrepreneurial investments to talent
development
GUIDING COMMUNITY INVESTMENT

45. BUILDING COMMUNITY
INFRASTRUCTURE
• Broadband: 430,000 renewable energy and
energy efficiency job openings nationally.
Wireless Industry Association leading national
Registered Apprenticeship
• Transportation: Department of Transportation
investments include funding for job training
programs including pre-apprenticeship and
apprenticeship
• Housing: Strong introduction to the Trades
through YouthBuild, pre-apprenticeship, and
other programs

46. DISCUSSION

47. THANK YOU! DEBORAH KOBES
VANESSA BENNETT
dkobes@jff.org
vbennett@jff.org
VERONICA
BUCKWALTER
vbuckwalter@jff.org